Oprah Winfrey is a huge fan of the brand and how could she not? Carlos Huber Founder of ARQUISTE travelled the world and experienced perfumery from Spain to Paris to New York and places in between.

Recently I had the opportunity to sample some of the fragrances from ARQUISTE which are available at Barneyâ€™s New York, The Webster in Miami, Saks Fifth Avenue Mexico and Aâ€™Mareeâ€™s in Newport Beach, CA.

According to Arquiste: A scent is a time capsule. It can invoke our most intimate memories and dreams, and open doors to distant worlds. Curated by an architect specializing in Historic Preservation, Arquiste is a fragrance collection that transports the wearer to evocative moments in history.

Ahhh Minnesotahhh! The land of 10,000 lakes, walleye pike, wild rice and 10 other things that are my personal faves. My mom is from Minnesota so I’ve been visiting family there for years and wanted to share some of my personal fave things about the great state.

10. The Saint Paul Hotel & The St. Paul Grill – I make sure to schedule a Sunday into any trip to MN I take so I can head to The St. Paul Grill for brunch which is located in the Saint Paul Hotel. My favorite item is their sausage gravy and biscuits. It is out of this world! The gravy is a spicy cream sauce that is to die for. They also provide a little pastry tray for the table which has chocolate croissants, sticky buns and more.

9. Cheese Curds – Fried cheese curds to be exact. The first time I ever had cheese curds was at the Mall of America, although you can usually find them at their State Fair. During a recent trip to Minnesota I was pleasantly surprised that the hotel we stayed at (Ramada MOA) offered fried cheese curds at their restaurant. Score!

8. Mall of America – How could I write about Minnesota without including the largest mall in the US? Not possible! Not only is this the one stop spot for shopping cause ever store known to man is there, but there’s a theme park, shows, LEGO Land, restaurants galore and more. Plus as I mentioned above the location of my first cheese curd experience.

7.Â Illume – Minnesota is home of Illume candles. They have the most amazing fragrances and their diffusers last forever. I adore them. You may read more about my love for Illume in my previous blog post HERE.

6. Bridgeman’s – The famous ice cream locale for Minnesotans. A chain throughout the State that has been slowly diminishing unfortunately. They have the best Butter Brickle ice cream ever! Plus they make a mean Turtle Sundae. Now if only they would open in NJ or ship to me.

4. Patina – I love love love this store! They have the cutest finds. They sell everything from bridal bingo to kids toys, cookbooks and lotions to purses and tee-shirts. I never walk out empty handed in this store. Such a cute store. I frequent the Highland Village location but they have a few stores scattered throughout the State.

3. Your Best Face (YBF) – Another great brand based in Minnesota. I came across them on Twitter and fell in love with them. You may read more about them in this previous post I wrote about them HERE. Great skincare, super moisturizing and smells like homemade biscotti. Yum!

2. The Lexington – You’ve got to go to “The Lex” when you’re in St. Paul. Established in 1935 they are a classic! Any occassion is a good occassion to be at “The Lex”. I personally love their Filet Mignon and they make a mean dirty martini. It’s very reminiscent of the “The Oak Room” in New York City.

1. My Grandma – I saved the best for last! No hyperlink here. 🙂 My grandma will be 95 this February and she is a total rockstar. Enough said.

Ok I’ve been completely obsessed with Illume products ever since my visit to the Red Door Spa. At the Red Door Spa I came across Illume products for the first time and wrote about my love for them HERE.

Recently Illume was having a holiday contest on their Facebook page. Of course I had to participate. Needless to say I won and received a Balsam & Cedar Ceramic Candle. The scent is amazing. It smells like the holidays but at the same time has a really clean scent to it. It’s not overly piney like many pine/holiday scents tend to be. It’s clean, fresh and holidayish and I adore it. Plus I can totally reuse the ceramic jar it came in once this scent runs out. Perfect!

Want to feel like you’re travelling Europe from the comfort of your home? Can’t afford the getaway to Paris? Well, Bath & Body Works fragrance Paris Amour will take you away to Paris without even leaving your bathroom.

I’ve been a fan of Bath & Body Works for as long as I can remember. At first I was in love with Plumeria, Juniper Breeze and Sun Ripened Raspberry. Those were my favorite scents. Since then I’ve began to love Mango Mandarin and Twisted Peppermint. Both of which I’ve been using for about 2 years and adore! The Mango Mandarin is a great wake-me-up citrusy scent which I love in the mornings and during the summer. Twisted Peppermint is also another great wake-me-up scent and perfect for the holidays.

Bath & Body Works was kind enough to provide me with Paris Amour Eau de Toilette and Body Lotion so I could stray away from my go to faves and try something new.Â With it’s Sparkling Mandarin as one of the top notes, I knew this would be a watch made in… Paris!

Master perfumers have blended French tulips, apple blossoms and sparkling pink champagne to create this beautiful fragrance inspired by a romantic stroll through the streets of Paris.

I’ve been following Kenton magazine on Twitter for a while now. I was thrilled when I won the Eau de Lacoste contest. My hubby had actually read an article recently about the new Lacoste fragrances and was anxious to try them out. So when I won this contest you can imagine his excitement.

I can tell you first hand that both of these new fragrances are amazing. Both of them smell clean, fresh and just plain yummy.

The Lacoste Powerful Blue also denotes freshness but with an earthy flair. The Blue edition top notes combine a dose of citrusy grapefruit with cool notes of peppermint. At the heart there is a smooth and aromatic accord of sage which blends with an earthy base of patchouli, amber wood and oak moss to create a powerful, and masculine scent.

The hubby says “It’s fresh. I like theÂ classic packaging. The 30ml is great for travel.”

The packaging for the new scents are timeless and classic typical for Lacoste. They also don’t wear off like many fragrances. The scent stays on you for hours. Both my hubby and I loved both of the scents although I do prefer the Green a little more over the Blue. I feel it has more of a clean scent which I prefer.

Disclaimer *I received this product as part of aÂ contest. I was not required to write a blog post. My thoughts are my own.